At the regular press conference on Wednesday afternoon, Premier Scott Moe announced that he was extending the province's state of emergency for a further two weeks, taking it to the end of April.

For now, non-essential businesses will remain closed, and all gatherings of more than ten people will remain prohibited and enforceable by the various Saskatchewan law enforcement agencies.

It's not an unexpected move given the direction of discussions had in recent days.

With the province's curve beginning to flatten and its COVID-19 cases trending in the right direction, there has been plenty of talk in recent days about lessening some of the restrictions and in-effect, re-opening the economy. Moe was quick to dismiss the notion, stating that any move in that regard would be both gradual, methodical, and at a slow pace.

"I also want to be very clear that there are some restrictions that we will not be relaxing any time soon. In particular, restrictions that relate to the highest risk activities that occur."

He pointed to travel as an example. With the first wave of cases being directly related to travel, he stressed vehemently that regardless of what moves may be taken in the coming weeks, the mandatory self-isolation after travel will remain for the foreseeable future.

Any move in the direction of re-opening Saskatchewan is still two weeks away, however, as the State of emergency will see the province through until April 29th, with even the unveiling of any potential plan being given nothing more concrete than a vague mention.

"This reinforces that even as we review options for a potential, phased-in approach to reopen Saskatchewan, we are still in a state of emergency and we must not be complacent. We must remain vigilant. Because quite frankly lives in our community and lives in our province depend on it."

As of yesterday's update, the province has had 305 confirmed cases, with 219 having recovered and only 82 remaining active.

The State of Emergency was originally declared on March 18, 2020, and banned large gatherings and non-essential businesses like gym, restaurants and recreational vehicle dealers to close their doors to the public. This marks its second extension.